Method for manufacturing custom products

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatuses for manufacturing products having custom graphic designed are disclosed. A method may comprise printing a first order identifier graphic on a substrate material, the first order identifier graphic associated with a first order for a first set of products, printing a first set of one or more graphic designs on the material, the graphic designs associated with the first order, combining the material with one or more product components to form the first set of products, each of the products of the first set of products being associated with the first customer order and at least one of the products of the first set of products comprising the first order identifier graphic, performing a print quality inspection on the print test graphic, and after determining the print test graphic failed the print quality inspection, culling each of products associated with the first order.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Custom manufactured products are increasing in consumer popularity. Someconsumers may prefer purchasing products in which one or more featuresof the products are selected by the consumer. In particular, someconsumers may desire an ability to select or design the graphic designsof the products they purchase.

Manufacturing such products with custom selected or designed graphicdesigns can present many manufacturing challenges. Current high-speeddigital printing techniques allow for changing of the graphic designfrom one product to the next on a manufacturing line. However, suchcapabilities require increasingly complex tracking systems to trackorders during manufacture, inspection systems to inspect individualproducts for not only product quality but also the desired graphicdesigns, and packaging systems to ensure the products with the selectedgraphic designs are matched with the consumer who placed the order.Accordingly, methods and apparatuses are continually desired which areable to successfully manufacture, inspect, and package products withcustom designs matched to specific orders.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is directed to several methods and apparatuses formanufacturing products with custom selected or designed graphics.

In a first illustrative example, a method for manufacturing productshaving custom graphic designs may comprise printing a first orderidentifier graphic on a substrate material, the first order identifiergraphic associated with a first order for a first set of products,printing a first set of one or more graphic designs on the firstsubstrate material, the first set of one or more graphic designsassociated with the first order, combining the first substrate materialwith one or more product components to form a first set of products,each of the products of the first set of products being associated withthe first customer order and at least one of the products of the firstset of products comprising the first order identifier graphic,performing a print quality inspection on the print test graphic, andafter determining the print test graphic failed the print qualityinspection, culling each of the plurality of products associated withthe first order.

The above summary of the present disclosure is not intended to describeeach embodiment or every implementation of the present disclosure.Advantages and attainments, together with a more complete understandingof the disclosure, will become apparent and appreciated by referring tothe following detailed description and claims taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The aspects of the disclosure may be further understood in considerationof the following detailed description of various embodiments inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic depiction of a system for manufacturing productswith custom selected or designed graphics, according to aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic depiction of a server device, according to aspectsof the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a schematic depiction of an exemplary printing system,according to aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary test product graphic, according to aspects of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of an exemplary printed substrate, accordingto aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a schematic depiction of an exemplary product manufacturingapparatus according to aspects of the present disclosure.

Repeat use of reference characters in the present specification anddrawings is intended to represent the same or analogous features orelements of the disclosure. Additionally, while the aspects of thedisclosure are amenable to various modifications and alternative forms,specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings andwill be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that theintention is not to limit aspects of the disclosure to the particularembodiments described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover allmodifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spiritand scope of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure is generally directed towards methods andapparatuses for manufacturing products with custom selected or designedgraphics. In some embodiments, a test product may be added to ato-be-manufactured series of products comprising a customer order. Thetest product may comprise a print test graphic which is the only graphicinspected for quality of the series of products comprising the customorder. For example, a determination to cull the products of the customerorder and re-manufacture the customer order may be based on a graphicinspection of only the print test graphic of the test product. The testproduct may further be placed in a primary packaging, such as a clearplastic bag, with the products of the customer order. Subsequently, thetest product may be removed from the primary packaging and the remainingproducts of the customer order may be packaged in a secondary packaging.Alternatively, the test product with the products of the customer ordermay be placed in a secondary packaging, and the test product may beremoved from the primary and secondary packaging before the rest of theproducts of a consumer order are packaged in a tertiary packaging.

When introducing elements of the present disclosure or the preferredembodiment(s) thereof, the articles “a”, “an”, “the” and “said” areintended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms“comprising”, “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive andmean that there may be additional elements other than the listedelements. Many modifications and variations of the present disclosurecan be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.Therefore, the exemplary embodiments described above should not be usedto limit the scope of the invention.

Definitions:

The term “absorbent article” refers herein to an article which may beplaced against or in proximity to the body (i.e., contiguous with thebody) of the wearer to absorb and contain various liquid, solid, andsemi-solid exudates discharged from the body. Such absorbent articles,as described herein, are intended to be discarded after a limited periodof use instead of being laundered or otherwise restored for reuse. It isto be understood that the present disclosure is applicable to variousdisposable absorbent articles, including, but not limited to, diapers,training pants, youth pants, swim pants, feminine hygiene products,including, but not limited to, menstrual pads, incontinence products,medical garments, surgical pads and bandages, other personal care orhealth care garments, and the like without departing from the scope ofthe present disclosure.

The term “acquisition layer” refers herein to a layer capable ofaccepting and temporarily holding liquid body exudates to decelerate anddiffuse a surge or gush of the liquid body exudates and to subsequentlyrelease the liquid body exudates therefrom into another layer or layersof the absorbent article.

The term “bonded” refers herein to the joining, adhering, connecting,attaching, or the like, of two elements. Two elements will be consideredbonded together when they are joined, adhered, connected, attached, orthe like, directly to one another or indirectly to one another, such aswhen each is directly bonded to intermediate elements. The bonding ofone element to another can occur via continuous or intermittent bonds.

The term “carded web” refers herein to a web containing natural orsynthetic staple length fibers typically having fiber lengths less thanabout 100 mm. Bales of staple fibers can undergo an opening process toseparate the fibers which are then sent to a carding process whichseparates and combs the fibers to align them in the machine directionafter which the fibers are deposited onto a moving wire for furtherprocessing. Such webs are usually subjected to some type of bondingprocess such as thermal bonding using heat and/or pressure. In additionto or in lieu thereof, the fibers may be subject to adhesive processesto bind the fibers together such as by the use of powder adhesives. Thecarded web may be subjected to fluid entangling, such ashydroentangling, to further intertwine the fibers and thereby improvethe integrity of the carded web. Carded webs, due to the fiber alignmentin the machine direction, once bonded, will typically have more machinedirection strength than cross machine direction strength.

The term “film” refers herein to a thermoplastic film made using anextrusion and/or forming process, such as a cast film or blown filmextrusion process. The term includes apertured films, slit films, andother porous films which constitute liquid transfer films, as well asfilms which do not transfer fluids, such as, but not limited to, barrierfilms, filled films, breathable films, and oriented films.

The term “gsm” refers herein to grams per square meter.

The term “hydrophilic” refers herein to fibers or the surfaces of fiberswhich are wetted by aqueous liquids in contact with the fibers. Thedegree of wetting of the materials can, in turn, be described in termsof the contact angles and the surface tensions of the liquids andmaterials involved. Equipment and techniques suitable for measuring thewettability of particular fiber materials or blends of fiber materialscan be provided by Cahn SFA-222 Surface Force Analyzer System, or asubstantially equivalent system. When measured with this system, fibershaving contact angles less than 90 are designated “wettable” orhydrophilic, and fibers having contact angles greater than 90 aredesignated “nonwettable” or hydrophobic.

The term “light transmittance” or “light transmission” refers herein toa measured property of a substrate, or substrates, as defined by theLight Transmittance Test further described herein.

The term “liquid impermeable” refers herein to a layer or multi-layerlaminate in which liquid body exudates, such as urine, will not passthrough the layer or laminate, under ordinary use conditions, in adirection generally perpendicular to the plane of the layer or laminateat the point of liquid contact.

The term “liquid permeable” refers herein to any material that is notliquid impermeable.

The term “meltblown” refers herein to fibers formed by extruding amolten thermoplastic material through a plurality of fine, usuallycircular, die capillaries as molten threads or filaments into converginghigh velocity heated gas (e.g., air) streams which attenuate thefilaments of molten thermoplastic material to reduce their diameter,which can be a microfiber diameter. Thereafter, the meltblown fibers arecarried by the high velocity gas stream and are deposited on acollecting surface to form a web of randomly dispersed meltblown fibers.Such a process is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,849,241 toButin et al., which is incorporated herein by reference. Meltblownfibers are microfibers which may be continuous or discontinuous, aregenerally smaller than about 0.6 denier, and may be tacky andself-bonding when deposited onto a collecting surface.

The term “nonwoven” refers herein to materials and webs of materialwhich are formed without the aid of a textile weaving or knittingprocess. The materials and webs of materials can have a structure ofindividual fibers, filaments, or threads (collectively referred to as“fibers”) which can be interlaid, but not in an identifiable manner asin a knitted fabric. Nonwoven materials or webs can be formed from manyprocesses such as, but not limited to, meltblowing processes,spunbonding processes, carded web processes, etc.

The term “pliable” refers herein to materials which are compliant andwhich will readily conform to the general shape and contours of thewearer's body.

The term “spunbond” refers herein to small diameter fibers which areformed by extruding molten thermoplastic material as filaments from aplurality of fine capillaries of a spinnerette having a circular orother configuration, with the diameter of the extruded filaments thenbeing rapidly reduced by a conventional process such as, for example,eductive drawing, and processes that are described in U.S. Pat. No.4,340,563 to Appel et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,692,618 to Dorschner et al.,U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,817 to Matsuki et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,338,992 and3,341,394 to Kinney, U.S. Pat. No. 3,502,763 to Hartmann, U.S. Pat. No.3,502,538 to Peterson, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,542,615 to Dobo et al., eachof which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. Spunbondfibers are generally continuous and often have average deniers largerthan about 0.3, and in an embodiment, between about 0.6, 5 and 10 andabout 15, 20 and 40. Spunbond fibers are generally not tacky when theyare deposited on a collecting surface.

The term “superabsorbent” refers herein to a water-swellable,water-insoluble organic or inorganic material capable, under the mostfavorable conditions, of absorbing at least about 15 times its weightand, in an embodiment, at least about 30 times its weight, in an aqueoussolution containing 0.9 weight percent sodium chloride. Thesuperabsorbent materials can be natural, synthetic and modified naturalpolymers and materials. In addition, the superabsorbent materials can beinorganic materials, such as silica gels, or organic compounds, such ascross-linked polymers.

The term “thermoplastic” refers herein to a material which softens andwhich can be shaped when exposed to heat and which substantially returnsto a non-softened condition when cooled.

The term “user” or “caregiver” refers herein to one who fits anabsorbent article, such as, but not limited to, a diaper, training pant,youth pant, incontinent product, or other absorbent article about thewearer of one of these absorbent articles. A user and a wearer can beone and the same person.

The following detailed description should be read with reference to thedrawings in which similar elements in different drawings are numberedthe same. The detailed description and the drawings, which are notnecessarily to scale, depict illustrative embodiments and are notintended to limit the scope of the disclosure. The illustrativeembodiments depicted are intended only as exemplary. Selected featuresof any illustrative embodiment may be incorporated into an additionalembodiment unless clearly stated to the contrary.

FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing of system 5 comprising a system formanufacturing products having custom selected or designed graphicdesigns. Client device 10 may comprise a processor 12, a memory 14, acommunication module 16, and a user interface module 18. The clientdevice 10 may be connected through a communication network 11 to aserver device 20, which may comprise a processor 22, a memory 24, acommunication module 16, and a user interface module 28. The clientdevice 10 may communicate with the server device 20 through thecommunication network 11.

A customer may initiate a request for purchasing one or more productsthrough the client device 10, termed an order or customer order herein.For example, the customer may interact with the client device 10 throughthe user interface module 16. This interaction may cause the processor12 to request information from the server device 20 throughcommunication module 16. The server device 20 may receive the requestthrough communication module 26, and the processor 22 may retrieve therequested information from the memory 24 and communicate the requestedinformation to the client device 10 through the communication module 26.

The information communicated by the server device 20 may be aninteractive product ordering website, which allows the customer, throughinteraction with the client device 10, to input one or more pieces ofinformation, make one or more selections, and pay for one or moreproducts, thereby generating a customer order. In some embodiments, thecustomer may input information such as a type of product the customerdesires to order. In some particular embodiments according to thepresent disclosure, the type of product may be an absorbent articleproduct. However, it should be understood that the specific type ofproducts described herein are not meant to limit the disclosure, as thedescribed manufacturing methods may be applicable to a broad range ofproducts beyond just absorbent articles.

The information may further include an order quantity, a product size(for example, size 1-6 or small, medium, or large) or sub-type (forexample, light, medium, heavy). In some embodiments, the information mayfurther include a name, age, birthdate, gender, waist size, and/orweight. The information can also include an order date and time and/oraddress of the customer and/or and address of an intended recipient ofthe products of the order (e.g. a shipping address). Further, theinformation may include a selection of one or more graphic designsand/or input text information. In some embodiments, the customer mayupload one or more custom graphic designs to the client device 10, suchas through user interface module 18, to use as a selection(s) for thegraphic designs of the one or more products of the order. Where multiplegraphic designs are selected or uploaded, the information may furtherinclude a number of the products associated with each of the selecteddesigns.

The input and/or uploaded information may be communicated to the serverdevice 20 through communication network 11. The server device 20 maystore the received information in the memory 24. The server device 20may further perform one or more functions related to the receivedinformation, as will be described in more detail below. The serverdevice 20 may communicate information to manufacturing apparatus 30 inorder to initiate manufacture of the products according to the receivedcustomer order.

It should be understood that FIG. 1 depicts only one exemplary systemwhich may implement the methods and processes described herein. In otherembodiments, the system could contain one or more additional devices andthe described inputting, processing, and/or storing steps may be splitbetween the devices in any manner to achieve the described function ofsystem 5. For example, the server device 20 may communicate theinteractive website to the client device 10. However, the informationinput and/or uploaded to the client device 10 may be communicated to athird device (not shown) which is in communication with themanufacturing apparatus 30. Such a third device may be the device whichperforms the functions described below, including communicating with themanufacturing apparatus 30 to initiate manufacture of the products ofthe customer order. Accordingly, the methods and processes of thepresent disclosure should not be considered limited in implementation bythe specific configuration of system 5 of FIG. 1. Other systems whichare capable of implementing the methods and processes of the presentdisclosure are within the scope of this disclosure.

The processors 12, 22 may be any conventional processing device that canbe configured to implement functionality and/or process instructions forexecution within the devices 10, 20. The processors 12, 22 may becapable of processing instructions stored in memories 14, 24. Forexample, the processors 12, 22 may be what is conventionally known as acentral processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, or one of many types ofmicrocontrollers.

The memories 14, 24 may be configured to store information within thedevices 10, 20 during operation. The memories 14, 24 may, in someexamples, be described as computer-readable storage media. In someexamples, the memories 14, 24 are temporary memory, meaning that aprimary purpose of the memories 14, 24 is not long-term storage. Thememories 14, 24 may also be described as volatile memories, meaning thatthe memories 14, 24 do not maintain stored contents when the computer isturned off. Examples of volatile memories include random access memories(RAM), dynamic random-access memories (DRAM), static random-accessmemories (SRAM), and other forms of volatile memories known in the art.In some examples, the memories 14, 24 may be used to store programinstructions for execution by the processors 12, 22. The memories 14, 24may be used by software or applications running on the devices 10, 20 totemporarily store information during program execution. In someembodiments, the memories 14, 24 may comprise both volatile memory andnon-volatile memory. Such non-volatile memory may also include one ormore computer-readable storage media. Examples of non-volatile memoryinclude magnetic hard discs, optical discs, floppy discs, flashmemories, or forms of electrically programmable memories (EPROM) orelectrically erasable and programmable (EEPROM) memories.

As briefly described above, the communication modules 16, 26 may allowthe devices 10, 20 to communicate with other devices via one or morenetworks, such as communication networks 11 and/or 13. The communicationmodules 16, 26 may comprise components capable of communicating throughwired and/or wireless networks. In some embodiments, the communicationmodules 16, 26 may include components for communicating over wire,Wi-Fi, and/or Bluetooth. Accordingly, the communication networks 11, 13may represent wired, Wi-Fi, and/or Bluetooth networks. It should beunderstood, however, that these are just some example networks that thesystem 5 may use to communicate. The present disclosure contemplates theuse of any type of network for communication between the various devicesof the system implementing the methods and processes of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing of the server device 20 includinginformation stored in the memory 24. The server device 20 may receiveinformation included with a customer order from the client device 10.The server device 20 may store the received information in the memory 24as shown by ORDER 1, ORDER 2, and ORDER 3 in FIG. 2, each representing aunique received customer order. Upon or after receiving a customer order(and associated information), the server device 20 may generate a uniqueJOB ID parameter and associate the JOB ID with a specific customerorder, such as ORDER 1. The JOB ID parameter may be a numericalparameter, or any other parameter type, that can be used as a referenceto a customer order, such as ORDER 1, ORDER 2, ORDER 3, or the like.

The server device 20 may further generate one or more order componentparameters from the information received with the customer order. Theseorder components 1 through n may comprise individual entries in thememory 24 comprising the information that the user selected and/or inputduring the ordering process—e.g. article type, size and/or sub-type,article quantity, and/or the selected or uploaded graphic design for useon the product.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the server device 20 may store the receivedcustomer orders in a batch queue 21. The batch queue 21 represents aholding space for the customer orders before the customer orders arebatched into a manufacturing queue 23. In some embodiments, the serverdevice 20 may be configured to form the manufacturing queue 23 from thecustomer orders within the batch queue 21 on a periodic basis. Forexample, the server device 20 may be configured to form a manufacturingqueue 23 from the contents of the batch queue 21 once daily, every twodays, every three days, weekly, or the like. Alternatively, the serverdevice 20 may be configured to form a manufacturing queue 23 from theorders contained in the batch queue 21 when a threshold number of ordersare in the batch queue 21.

The manufacturing queue 23 may generally comprise a sequential listingof JOB IDs, representing individual customer orders. The manner in whichthe server device 20 compiles the manufacturing queue 23 may differ indifferent embodiments. In some embodiments, the server device 20 maycompile the manufacturing queue 23 such that the JOB IDs are orderedbeginning with the JOB IDs associated with the earliest order date andtime (which may be stored as an order component associated with the JOBIDs). Alternatively, the server device 20 may compile the manufacturingqueue 23 such that the JOB IDs are ordered beginning with the JOB IDsassociated with the most recent order date and time. In still otherembodiments, the JOB IDs may be arranged such that JOB IDs with the sameselected graphic design(s) are grouped together. In still furtherembodiments, the JOB IDs may be grouped by geographic region (e.g.country, state, county) of the recipient of the order (e.g. the shippingaddress).

In at least one embodiment, the server device 20 may compile themanufacturing queue 23 in order to produce one or more series of JOB IDscomprising a requisite quantity of products. For example, each JOB IDmay have an associated order component detailing a quantity of productsassociated with that JOB ID. The system 900, described in more detailwith respect to FIG. 6, may be configured to package a set quantity ofproducts within a single package. The set quantity may be termed a bagquantity herein. To allow for customers to order a number of productsless than the bag quantity for which the system 900 is configured, theserver device 20 may form the manufacturing queue 23 to place JOB IDsassociated with quantities of products, each individually less than abag quantity, which add up to the bag quantity adjacent to each other inthe manufacturing queue 23. As one illustrative example, where the bagquantity is thirty, the server device 20 may form the manufacturingqueue 23 by placing JOB IDs associated with quantities of productshaving values of ten, eight, four, six and two, which when addedtogether equal the bag quantity of thirty, adjacent to each other in themanufacturing queue 23.

After compiling the manufacturing queue 23, the server device 20 maycommunicate the manufacturing queue 23 to the manufacturing apparatus 30and instruct the manufacturing apparatus 30 to manufacture productsaccording to the information associated with each JOB ID. For instance,the manufacturing apparatus may manufacture the quantity of productsassociated with each JOB ID, the products having the graphic designsassociated with the JOB ID. In some embodiments, the manufacturingapparatus 30 may comprise multiple sub-apparatuses, such as a printingapparatus and a product forming apparatus. In what will be termed anoff-line manufacturing embodiment herein, the server device 20 maycommunicate the manufacturing queue 23 to a printing apparatus in orderto print the graphic designs onto a substrate material according to themanufacturing queue 23.

FIG. 3 is a schematic depiction of an exemplary printing apparatus 100which may be used to print the graphic designs associated with thecustomer orders, according to aspects of the present disclosure. Theprinting apparatus 100 may comprise roll 61 comprising an un-printedsubstrate material 60. The substrate material 60 may be unwound fromroll 61 and pass over one or more guide rolls 62. The substrate material60 may also pass under first print station 51 and second print station53. Each of the first and second print stations 51, 53 may comprise fourseparate print bars 51 a-d, 53 a-d. The print bars 51 a-d, 53 a-d mayspan the substrate material 60 in the cross-machine direction (CD) for adistance covering a width of the substrate material 60 where the graphicdesign is to be located. Each of the print bars 51 a-d, 53 a-d maycomprise multiple print heads disposed adjacent one another in the CD.In some embodiments, each of the print bars 51 a-d, 53 a-d may comprisetwo print heads, three print heads, four print heads, five print heads,or any other suitable number of print heads.

Each of the print bars 51 a-d, 53 a-d may be configured to print asingle color. In some embodiments, separate ones of the print bars 51a-d may be configured to print black ink, cyan ink, magenta ink, andyellow ink. The print bars 53 a-d may be configured in a similar way tothe print bars 51 a-d. In this manner, the print station 53 may beconfigured as a redundant print station to the print station 51 and mayonly operate when the print station 51 has a malfunction. In otherembodiments, the print stations 51 and 53 may operate in coordinationwith each other to print the desired graphic designs onto the substratematerial 60. In such embodiments, the substrate material 60 may be movedpast the print stations 51, 53 at a line speed faster than the maximumfiring speeds of the print heads of the print stations 51, 53 such thatthe print stations individually are unable to print the graphic designsat a print desired resolution (measured in dots-per-inch or DPI). Insuch embodiments, the two print stations 51, 53 may both print portionsof the same graphic designs, there by achieving a higher printresolution than either of the print stations could achieve individuallyat the high line speed, according to well-known techniques in the art.

After passing under the first and second print stations 51, 53, thesubstrate material 60 may then continue on through the apparatus 100 andeventually be wound up into a new roll of printed-substrate material 63.This printed-substrate material 63 may then be transported to a productmanufacturing apparatus to be combined with one or more differentproduct components to form the products of the customer order. Thesubstrate material 60 may pass through one or more other components ofthe printing apparatus 100, such as scanner 52 and print station 55,which will be described in more detail below.

Accordingly, once the printing apparatus 100 has received amanufacturing queue 23 from the server device 20 and an instruction tobegin the printing process, the printing apparatus 100 may begin toprint the graphic designs associated with the JOB IDs of themanufacturing queue 23. For the first JOB ID in the manufacturing queue23, the printing apparatus 100 may be configured to print a number ofthe graphic designs equal to the order quantity associated with thefirst JOB ID plus an extra number of graphic designs. The extra numberof graphic designs may be a value equal to between about 1% and about30% of the order quantity, rounded up to the nearest whole number. Inother embodiments, the extra number of graphic designs may be a valueequal to between about 1% and about 25% of the order quantity, roundedup to the nearest whole number, or between about 1% and about 20% of theorder quantity, rounded up to the nearest whole number, or between about1% and about 15% of the order quantity, rounded up to the nearest wholenumber, or between about 1% and about 10% of the order quantity, roundedup to the nearest whole number. Printing these extra graphic designsallows for extra products to be manufactured associated with each JOBID. These extra products can help to ensure that at least the orderquantity number of products are made for each order accounting forexpected discarding of products due to manufacturing defects in theproduct formation process.

At some point prior to the printing step detailed above, the serverdevice 20 may be configured to generate a test product graphic for eachJOB ID and associate the generated test product graphic with thecorresponding JOB ID. For example, the server device 20 may generate atest product graphic for each JOB ID and store the test product graphicas one of the order components associated with the JOB ID. An exemplarytest product graphic 110 is shown in FIG. 4. Each test product graphic110 may comprise a print test graphic 112, an indicator graphic 114, anda JOB ID order identifier graphic 116.

The print test graphic 112 is a printed graphic against which a numberof measurements may be made by the manufacturing apparatus 30 as part ofa print quality inspection. The measurements may determine an amount ofun-alignment or uncoordinated phasing of either print heads within aprint bar or between print bars. As can be seen in FIG. 4, the printtest graphic 112 comprises print lines 57 a-d and 59 a-d, along withprint blocks 71 a-d and 73 a-d. The print lines 57 a-d and 59 a-d andprint blocks 71 a-d and 73 a-d are shown with different hatching (or nohatching) to represent that the print lines 57 a-d and 59 a-d and printblocks 71 a-d and 73 a-d may comprise different colors. The indicatorgraphic 114 may comprise a predetermined graphic located in apredetermined position on the substrate material 60 which can bedetected by an inspection system. In some embodiments, the indicatorgraphic 114 may comprise an easily identifiable marking. For example,indicator graphic 114 may be colored to have high contrast (illustratedby the straight, crossing lines hatching) relative to the substrate onwhich the indicator graphic 114 is printed for easier detection.Detection of the indicator graphic 114 may trigger one or moreoperations in the printing apparatus 100 or the product manufacturingapparatus.

The JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 may be a graphic that correlateswith the JOB ID in the manufacturing queue 23. For instance, the JOB IDorder identifier graphic 116 may comprise a barcode or a matrix barcodethat, when scanned by a reader, causes the reader to generate a JOB IDparameter corresponding to a customer order and/or cause themanufacturing apparatus 30 to take one or more actions.

When the printing apparatus 100 is printing each customer order,according to the JOB ID sequencing in the manufacturing queue 23, theprinting apparatus 100 may be configured to print a test product graphic110 prior the graphic designs associated with the JOB ID. This testproduct graphic 110 may be scanned by scanner 52 and the test productgraphic 110 may be subject to a print quality test, or at least theprint test graphic 112 may be subjected to a print quality inspection.

The print quality inspection may generally comprise a test to ensurealignment between each print head within a single print bar, such as oneof print bars 51 a-d and 53 a-d, for each of the print bars 51 a-d and53 a-d. To achieve this test, one method, referring to FIG. 5, may befor one of the print stations 51 and 53 to print each of the print lines57 a-d of the print test graphic 112. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, theprint lines 57 a-d are printed by the first print station 51. Each ofprint lines 59 a-d may be printed by the other one of the first printstation 51 and the second print station 53—the second print station 53in the machine direction of the embodiment of FIG. 5. In someembodiments, the print lines 57 a-d and the print lines 59 a-d may havedifferent coloring, such as that indicated in FIG. 4.

With reference to print lines 57 a-d, each of the print lines 57 a-d maybe broken down into line segments delineated with respect to regions 91,93, 95, and 97, with each line segment within one of the regions 91, 93,95, and 97 being printed by a different print head. For example, theembodiment of FIG. 5 shows each of the print bars 51 a-51 d and 53 a-53d comprising four print heads spanning the cross-machine direction 31 ofthe substrate material 60. Dotted lines 54 mark the boundaries of theindividual print heads in the print bars 51 a-51 d and 53 a-53 d in FIG.5. The line segment corresponding to region 91 of print line 57 a may beprinted by a leftmost printhead of the print bar 51 a, the line segmentcorresponding to region 93 of print line 57 a may printed by a secondleftmost printhead of the print bar 51 a, and so on.

As part of the print quality inspection, each of the line segmentswithin the regions 91, 93, 95, and 97 may be inspected to determinetheir relative positioning in the machine-direction (MD). For example, atrailing edge of each of the line segments within the different regions91, 93, 95, and 97, such as line edges 92, 94, 96, and 98, may beidentified for each of the line segments within the different regions91, 93, 95, and 97. The MD offsets between each of the line edges 92,94, 96, and 98 may be determined as a number of millimeters. Forexample, an MD offset between the line edges 92 and 94 may bedetermined, and between line edges 92 and 96, and between line edges 92and 98. If any of the offsets are determined to be greater than about0.1 mm, or greater than about 0.2 mm, or greater than about 0.3 mm, orgreater than about 0.4 mm, or greater than about 0.5 mm, or greater thanabout 0.6 mm, or greater than about 0.7 mm, or greater than about 0.8mm, the printing apparatus 100 may determine that the print test graphic112 has failed the print quality inspection. In some furtherembodiments, MD offsets may further be determined between line edges 94and 96, and between line edges 94 and 98, and between line edges 96 and98 and compared to determine whether the print test graphic 112 hasfailed the print quality inspection. It should be understood thatleading edges, or other features, of the line segments within theregions 91, 93, 95, and 97 could be used to determine offsets.

In at least some further embodiments, the print quality inspection maycomprise a test to ensure alignment between multiple print stations,such as print stations 51 and 53. To achieve such a test, a first one offirst print station 51 and the second print station 53 may print each ofthe print blocks 71 a-d, with each of the print blocks 71 a-d beingprinted by a different one of the print bars 51 a-d or 53 a-d. A secondone of the first print station 51 and 53 may print each of the printblocks 73 a-d, with each of the print blocks 73 a-d being printed by adifferent one of the print bars 51 a-d or 53 a-d. The print blocks 71a-d and 73 a-d are printed so as to align print block 71 a, printed by afirst one of print stations 51 and 53, with print block 73 a, printed bya second of print stations 51 and 53. The print blocks 71 b-d and 73 b-dare printed in this manner as well. In some embodiments, the printblocks 71 a-d and the print blocks 73 a-d may have different coloring,such as that indicated in FIG. 4.

In embodiments where the print quality inspection tests the printingalignment between the print stations 51 and 53, the printing apparatus100 may compare MD offsets between the print blocks 71 a-d and 73 a-d.For example, a reference print block may be identified, such as printblock 71 a. MD offsets, such as offsets 81-87, between each of the otherprint (blocks 71 b-d and 73 a-d in the present example) and thereference print block (block 71 a in the present example) may bedetermined. Then, the offsets of corresponding print blocks are comparedto determine any difference in offsets. For example, the MD offsetbetween the reference block, 71 a, and the print block 71 b is offset81. The MD offset between the reference block, 71 a, and the print block73 b is offset 85. The offset 81 is compared with the offset 85 todetermine any difference. If the difference is greater than about 0.1mm, or greater than about 0.2 mm, or greater than about 0.3 mm, orgreater than about 0.4 mm, or greater than about 0.5 mm, or greater thanabout 0.6 mm, or greater than about 0.7 mm, or greater than about 0.8mm, the printing apparatus 100 may determine that the print test graphic112 has failed the print quality inspection. This same analysis is donefor each of the print block pairs 71 b and 73 b, 72 c and 73 c, and 71 dand 73 d. For print blocks 71 a and 73 a, an MD offset value 84 isdetermined and compared to a threshold, such as any of the thresholdsdescribed above. If the offset value is greater than or equal to thethreshold, the printing apparatus 100 may determine that the print testgraphic 112 has failed the print quality inspection.

In some embodiments, the print quality inspection may only testalignment between the print heads within each of print bar, such asprint bars 51 a-d and/or 53 a-d, as described above. In otherembodiments, the print quality inspection may only test for alignmentbetween different print stations, such as stations 51 and 53, asdescribed above. In still further embodiments, the print qualityinspection may test alignment between the print heads within each ofprint bar and alignment between different print stations.

If the apparatus 100 determines that the print test graphic 112 failedthe print quality inspection, the printing apparatus 100 may take one ormore actions. In some embodiments, the control module 65 of the printingapparatus 100 may cause an electronic flag to be set associated with theJOB ID associated with the print test graphic 112 which failed the printquality inspection. This electronic flag may cause the productsassociated with the JOB ID to be culled during the product manufacturingprocess performed by the manufacturing apparatus 30. In otherembodiments, the control module 65 may cause the test product graphic110 to be modified in one or more ways. For example, the control module65 may cause the printing apparatus 100 to print over the JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116, such as at print station 55. In one example, theprinting apparatus 100 may print over the JOB ID graphic orderidentifier 116 such that the manufacturing apparatus 30 is unable toreference a specific JOB ID when the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116is read by a scanner device of the manufacturing apparatus 30. In someembodiments, the control module 65 may further instruct the serverdevice 20 to place the JOB ID associated with the print test graphic 112which failed the print quality inspection back into the batch queue 21so that the customer order may be manufactured again. In otherembodiments, the control module 65 may cause the printing apparatus 100and/or server 20 to perform any combination of these actions.

As mentioned, in an off-line process, after the printing apparatus 100has completed printing the graphic designs onto the substrate material60 according to the manufacturing queue 23, the printed-substratematerial 63 may form a roll. This roll of printed-substrate material 63may be transferred to a product manufacturing apparatus 30. Productmanufacturing apparatus 30 may be any suitable manufacturing apparatuswhich is capable of converting the printed-substrate material 63 into aseries of products. One exemplary embodiment of a manufacturingapparatus 30 is depicted in FIG. 6 and labeled as product manufacturingapparatus 900. The printed-substrate material 63 may be used as an outercover material and may be combined with one or more components in orderto form a finished product, such as an absorbent article. Although theprinting apparatus 100 and the product manufacturing apparatus 900 aredescribed herein a separate apparatuses, the printing apparatus 100 maybe a part of the product manufacturing apparatus 900 in someembodiments. In such embodiments, the substrate material 60 may not needto be rolled. Rather, the substrate material 60 may be printed to formprinted-substrate material 63, which is then fed directly into theproduct manufacturing apparatus 900 without being rolled.

The product manufacturing apparatus 900 of FIG. 6 may comprisecontinuous supply of material 904 used to form an article chassis isprovided from a suitable supply source 906 in the machine direction 901.Various components of the absorbent article can be disposed on and/orbonded to the chassis material 904 as the material travels in themachine direction 901, as described below.

A plurality of absorbent assemblies 908 are provided from a suitablesupply source such as, for example, an absorbent assembly forming module910 configured to form an absorbent assembly. In the illustratedembodiment, the absorbent assemblies 908 are delivered in the machinedirection 901 and disposed intermittently on the continuously movingchassis material 904, one for each absorbent article. In anothersuitable embodiment, a continuous web assembly including a backsheet, abodyside liner, and an absorbent structure can be supplied by theabsorbent assembly forming module 910 and subsequently cut by a cutter946 forming the absorbent article 902.

Adhesive can be applied to the chassis material 904 from an adhesiveapplicator 914 located downstream of the chassis material supply source906 for adhering the absorbent assemblies 908 to the chassis material904. The adhesive may be applied continuously or intermittently to thechassis material 904.

In addition to or instead of adhering the absorbent assemblies 908 tothe chassis material 904, the absorbent assemblies 908 and chassismaterial 904 can be transported through a bonding station 916 locateddownstream of the chassis material supply source 906 and the absorbentassembly supply source 910 to attach the absorbent assemblies 908 to thechassis material 904 and form a continuous web assembly 918 of chassismaterial 904 and absorbent assemblies 908. In one suitable embodiment,for example, the bonding station 916 includes a laminator roll and/or achill roll configured to press the absorbent assemblies 908 against thechassis material 904, and adhere the absorbent assemblies 908 to thechassis material 904 with the adhesive applied to the chassis material904 by the adhesive applicator 914. In another suitable embodiment, thebonding station 916 may include a rotary ultrasonic horn and an anvilroll configured to point bond the absorbent assemblies 908 (e.g., thebodyside liner and/or the backsheet of the absorbent assembly) to thechassis material 904 with or without the adhesive applied by theadhesive applicator 914.

The web assembly 918 has a body-facing side 920 defined by the chassismaterial 904 and the absorbent assembly and a garment-facing side 922defined by the chassis material 904. The web assembly 918 also includeslaterally opposing side edges 924 which, in the illustrated embodiment,are defined by laterally opposing side edges of the chassis material904.

Two continuous webs of suitable waist elastic materials 926, 928 used toform the bodyside and garment-side waist elastic members are provided inthe cross-machine direction 903 from suitable supply sources 930, 932,respectively. The supply sources 930, 932 can comprise any suitablemechanism. In the illustrated embodiment, each web of waist elasticmaterial 926, 928 is supplied by a single supply source 930, 932,respectively. It is understood, however, that one or both of the waistelastic materials 926, 928 can be supplied by more than one supplysource, such as, for example, two, three, four, five, or any othersuitable number of supply sources. Each of the webs of waist elasticmaterial 926, 928 is stretched along the direction in which the webs arefed using a plurality of tensioning rolls 934.

An adhesive applicator 933 applies adhesive to the web of waist elasticmaterial 926 for applying the waist elastic material 926 to thebody-facing side 920 of the web assembly 918. Similarly, an adhesiveapplicator 935 applies adhesive to the web of waist elastic material 928for applying the waist elastic material 928 to the garment-facing side922 of the web assembly 918. In one suitable embodiment, the adhesiveapplicators 933, 935 apply an elastic construction adhesive to the websof waist elastic material 926, 928, respectively, although any suitableadhesive may be applied by the adhesive applicators 933, 935.

The web of waist elastic material 926 used to form the bodyside waistelastic members is cut to form a plurality of discrete segments 936 ofwaist elastic material, oriented with respect to the web assembly 918,and applied to the body-facing side 920 of the web assembly 918 at acutting, orienting, and application station 938. The discrete segments936 are maintained in a stretched configuration during the cutting,orienting, and application process.

In the illustrated embodiment, the discrete segments 936 are orientedgenerally in the cross-machine direction 903 before being applied to theweb assembly 918, which is traveling in the machine direction 901.Exemplary methods and apparatus for attaching discrete segments in across-machine direction to a web moving in a machine direction aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,899,780 issued May 31, 2005 to Rajala etal., which is incorporated herein by reference. In addition, before thediscrete segments 936 are applied to the web assembly 918, the discretesegments 936 may be registered with the position of the web assembly 918and/or with respect to the position of the web of waist elastic material928 used to form garment-side waist elastic members to facilitate properalignment of the waist elastic members on the absorbent article 902.

The discrete segments 936 of waist elastic material are bonded to thebody-facing side 920 of the web assembly 918 at a bonding station 939using any suitable bonding technique. In one suitable embodiment, thediscrete segments 936 of waist elastic material 926 are point bonded tothe web assembly 918 using pressure, adhesive, thermal and/or ultrasonicbonding. In another suitable embodiment, the discrete segments 936 ofwaist elastic material 926 are bonded to the web assembly 918 withoutthe elastic construction adhesive applied by adhesive applicator 933.

The web of waist elastic material 928 used to form the garment-sidewaist elastic members is attached to the web assembly 918 using asimilar process as that used to attach bodyside waist elastic members.More specifically, the web of waist elastic material 928 used to formthe garment-side waist elastic members is cut into a plurality ofdiscrete segments 940 of waist elastic material, oriented with respectto the web assembly 918, and applied to the garment-facing side 922 ofthe web assembly 918 at a cutting, orienting, and application station942. The discrete segments 940 are maintained in a stretchedconfiguration during the cutting, orienting, and application process. Inthe illustrated embodiment, the discrete segments 940 are orientedgenerally in the cross-machine direction 903 before being applied to theweb assembly 918, which is traveling in the machine direction 901. Inaddition, before the discrete segments 940 are applied to the webassembly 918, the discrete segments 940 may be registered with theposition of the web assembly 918 and/or with respect to the position ofthe discrete segments 936 used to form the bodyside waist elasticmembers to facilitate proper alignment of the waist elastic members onthe absorbent article 902. In one suitable embodiment, for example, thediscrete segments 940 are cut, oriented, stretched, and/or registeredwith the position of the web assembly 918 such that the laterallyopposing side edges of the discrete segments 940 are aligned with thelaterally opposing side edges 924 of the web assembly 918 when thediscrete segments 940 are attached to the web assembly 918. In anothersuitable embodiment, both discrete segments 936, 940 are cut, oriented,stretched, and/or registered with the position of the web assembly 918and with respect to one another such that the laterally opposing sideedges of the discrete segments 936, 940 and the web assembly 918 are allaligned when the discrete segments 936, 940 are attached to the webassembly 918.

The discrete segments 940 of waist elastic material are bonded to thegarment-facing side 922 of the web assembly 918 at a bonding station 943using any suitable bonding technique. In one suitable embodiment, thediscrete segments 940 of waist elastic material 928 are point bonded tothe web assembly 918 using pressure, adhesive, thermal and/or ultrasonicbonding. In another suitable embodiment, the discrete segments 940 ofwaist elastic material 928 are bonded to the web assembly 918 withoutthe elastic construction adhesive applied by adhesive applicator 935.

Next in the illustrated embodiment, a shaping mechanism 944 selectivelyremoves portions of the web assembly 918 to provide a desired shape,such as curved side edges for leg openings. Such shaping mechanisms aregenerally known to those skilled in the art and can include, forexample, rotary die cutters, oscillating water cutters, and lasers.Next, a cutter 946 selectively cuts the web assembly 918 into discrete,partially assembled absorbent articles 902. Such cutters 946 aregenerally known to those skilled in the art and can include, forexample, the combination of a cutting roll and an anvil roll throughwhich the web assembly 918 travels. In the illustrated embodiment, theweb assembly 918 is cut along a mid-line of at least one of the discretesegments 936, 940 such that a single discrete segment 936, 940 of waistelastic material forms a waist elastic member in two different absorbentarticles 902 (e.g., a leading absorbent article and a trailing absorbentarticle). In the illustrated embodiment, the mid-line is a bisectingline, although it is contemplated that the mid-line along which thediscrete segments 936, 940 are cut can be off-set from the center of thediscrete segments such that the resulting waist elastic members of aleading absorbent article 902 have a different width than the waistelastic members of a trailing absorbent article 902.

In general, the product manufacturing apparatus 900 may comprise controlcircuitry 960 configured to control at least scanners 955, 957, 959,inspection and culling station 952 and stacker 950. The controlcircuitry 960 may comprise one or more general purpose computersconfigured with software to receive data from, and communicate data to,the various devices 955, 957, 959, 952, and 950 and/or other devicessuch as server 20. In other embodiments, the control circuitry 960 maybe application-specific circuitry configured to receive data from, andcommunicate data to, the various devices 955, 957, 959, 952, and 950and/or other devices such as server 20. The control circuitry 960 may beconfigured to instruct portions of the product manufacturing apparatus900 to take one or more actions according to such received data from thevarious devices 955, 957, 959, 952, and 950 and/or other devices such asserver 20, as described herein.

The product manufacturing apparatus 900 may inspect the absorbentarticles 902 at inspection and culling station 952. For example, thecontrol circuitry 960 may receive image data from a scanner which ispart of the inspection and culling station 952 and make a determinationabout each absorbent article 902 in relation to one or more qualitymetrics. For example, the control circuitry 960 may determine whetherthe absorbent articles 902 comprise one or more defects, such as missingor mis-aligned components, foreign objects, and other such defects.

The control circuitry 960 may process the image data received from theinspection and culling station 952 to form one or more parametersassociated with each of the absorbent articles 902. The controlcircuitry 960 may further compare the one or more parameters withthresholds and/or stored parameters in order to make a determinationabout one or more quality metrics related to each of the inspectedabsorbent articles 902. For example, the control circuitry 960 maydetermine that an absorbent article 902 meets a foreign object qualitymetric if the absorbent article 902 has a number of foreign objectswithin the absorbent article 902 less than a threshold number of foreignobjects. As another example, the control circuitry 960 may determinethat an absorbent article 902 meets an alignment quality metric if afirst component of the absorbent article 902 is skewed in relation asecond component of the absorbent article 902 less than a skew thresholdnumber of degrees. Of course, other quality metrics may be used, as isknown in the art.

If an absorbent article 902 does not meet one or more of the qualitymetrics, the control circuitry 960 may cause the absorbent article 902to be culled from the product manufacturing apparatus 900. Althoughshown as a single station 952, in further embodiments the inspection andculling steps may be split. For example, the inspection of the articles902 may be performed prior to the folding station 948, and the cullingstep may occur after the folding station 948. Although, this is just oneexample of how the inspection and culling steps may be split in thesystem 900.

The absorbent articles 902 are then folded at a folding station,indicated generally at 948, using a suitable folding mechanism (e.g.,blade folders, linear folders, book folders, tucker blades). In onesuitable configuration, the articles 902 are folded about a fold linegenerally bisecting the training pant. As such, the front and back waistregions 22, 24 of each article are positioned in facing relationship.Once the articles 902 are folded they can be sent to the stacker 950 andpackaged into a primary packaging.

The stacker 950 may be a conventional stacker comprising individualslots 951 for individual products, where the slots 951 continuallyadvance around the stacker 950 to allow for consecutive products to beslotted into consecutive slots 951. As a leading product reaches a setpoint (such as a predetermined position) within the stacker 950, thestacker 950 (or the control circuitry 960 controlling the stacker 950)determines if there are products in consecutive slots 951 after theleading product equal to a predetermined quantity, such as a bagquantity. If there are enough products in each slot 951 after theleading product, and including the leading product, to equal the bagquantity, the stacker 950 is configured to perform a stripping action(or the control circuitry 960 is configured to cause the stacker 950 toperform a stripping action) and strip the contents of a number of slots951 equal to the bag quantity into a primary package, such as a bag.

If there are not enough products in consecutive slots 951 after theleading product, and including the leading product, to equal the bagquantity, the stacker 950 does not perform a stripping action (or thecontrol circuitry 960 does not cause the stacker 950 to perform astripping action). Instead, the stacker 950 advances (or the controlcircuitry 960 causes the stacker 950 to advance) the slots 951 and theproduct in the slot 951 immediately subsequent to the slot 951comprising the leading product becomes a new leading product. Thestacker 950 (or the control circuitry 960) then performs the abovedescribed quantity check again.

In other embodiments, the stacker 950 may be configured (or the controlcircuitry 960 may be configured to cause the stacker 950) to advance apredetermined number of slots 951 after determining there are not enoughproducts in consecutive slots 951 after the slot 951 comprising leadingproduct, and including the leading product, to equal the bag quantity.In some embodiments, such a predetermined quantity may equal a bagquantity number of slots 951 in one example. In other embodiments, thepredetermined quantity may be less than equal the bag quantity number ofslots 951. The stacker 950 (or the control circuitry 960) may determinethere are not enough products in consecutive slots 951 after the slot951 comprising leading product, and including the leading product, toequal a bag quantity if, for example, there are empty slots 951 within aquantity of slots 951 equal to the bag quantity prior to (and including)the slot 951 comprising the leading product.

In some embodiments, the product manufacturing apparatus 900 may includean inspection system 955 capable of detecting the indicator graphic 114.For example, the inspection system 955 may be a vision system comprisinga sensor (such as a camera or other detector) and a processor. Theprocessor may be configured to receive data from the sensor and processthe data and identify one or more features in the received data. Whenthe processor finds the one or more features in the data, the processorcan initiate a detection event. When initiating a detection event, theprocessor of the inspection system 955 may cause the manufacturingapparatus 900 to trigger scanner 957 to read the JOB ID order identifiergraphic 116 associated with the indicator graphic 114. Upon successfulscanning of the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116, the productmanufacturing apparatus 900 may take one or more actions. A successfulreading of the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 may be scanning theJOB ID order identifier graphic 116 and correlating the JOB ID graphic116 with an ORDER ID. In other embodiments, the inspection system 955may comprise just a sensor and the control circuitry 960 may perform thefunction of the processor.

In some embodiments, after successful detection of the JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116, the control circuitry 960 may cause the productmanufacturing apparatus 900 to insert a predetermined number empty slots951 into the stacker 950. For example, the control circuitry 960 maycause the product manufacturing apparatus 900 to cull such apredetermined number of products immediately preceding the productcontaining the test product graphic 110, such as at culling station 952prior to the stacker 950. The predetermined number may be anywherebetween one product and twenty products, or between one product and tenproducts, or between on product and five products, and may be twoproducts in some embodiments. This culling step creates thepredetermined number of empty slots 951 in the stacker 950, as theproducts are culled instead of being inserted into slots 951 in thestacker 950. In other embodiments, the control circuitry 960 may causethe stacker to advance slots 951 equal to the predetermined number. Thisadvancement occurs prior to the slots 951 receiving products such thatslots 951 remain empty within the stacker 950.

The insertion of the predetermined number of empty slots 951 in thestacker 950 ensures that the stacker 950 will skip the stripping actionwhere the empty slots 951 are located at slot positions within the bagquantity number of slots 951 from a leading product, when the leadingproduct is at the set point within the stacker 950. As these empty slots951 advance in the stacker 950, the product containing the test productgraphic 110 advances just behind the empty slots 951. Ultimately, theproduct containing the test product graphic 110 becomes a leadingproduct with the products behind the product containing the test productgraphic 110 being products with graphic designs according to the JOB IDassociated with the indicator graphic 114 of the test product graphic110.

Once the product containing the test product graphic 110 becomes theleading product, the stacker 950 will determine if there are enoughproducts in consecutive slots 951 after and including the productcontaining the test product graphic 110 to equal the bag quantity. Ifthere are enough products, the stacker 950 will strip the contents of anumber of slots 951 equal to the bag quantity into a primary packaging.If there are not enough products in the consecutive slots 951 after andincluding the product containing the test product graphic 110 to equalthe bag quantity, the system 900 may communicate with the server 20 toadd the ORDER ID associated with the JOB ID of the product containingthe test product graphic 110 back into the batch queue 21, or otherwiseensure that the customer order associated with the JOB ID isre-manufactured.

Due to the insertion of the predetermined number of empty slots 951immediately preceding the product comprising the test product graphic110 within the stacker 950, the product comprising the test productgraphic 110 ends up being the first product disposed in the primarypackage after the stacker 950 performs the strip action which includesstripping the product containing the test product graphic 110. Theproduct containing the test product graphic 110 may be oriented withinthe primary package such that the JOB ID graphic order identifier 116 isvisible through the primary package. For example, the primary packagingmay be clear or may have a window allowing for viewing of the productcontaining the test product graphic 110 through the primary packaging.

As described previously, the control circuitry 960 may be configured tocause the product manufacturing apparatus 900 to produce a greaternumber of products than the order quantity number associated with a JOBID. This may be to ensure that a sufficient number of products aretypically made for each JOB ID which pass inspection at the inspectionand culling station 952. In some embodiments, the number of productsassociated with each JOB ID which pass inspection are counted. To theextent that there are a number of products associated with a JOB IDwhich pass inspection greater than the order quantity number associatedwith the JOB ID, the control circuitry 960 may cause products associatedwith the JOB ID to be culled to result in a number of productsassociated with the JOB ID equal to the order quantity number. Forexample, once the count reaches the order quantity number associatedwith the JOB ID, the control circuitry 960 may cause the remainingproducts associated with the JOB ID to be culled, such as by theinspection and culling station 952.

In some embodiments, a customer may order a number of products less thana bag quantity.

In such embodiments, the server 20 may be configured to form themanufacturing queue 23 where multiple JOB IDs associated with an orderquantity order component less than the bag quantity are disposedadjacent to each other in the manufacturing queue 23 such that adding upthe values of the order quantity order components associated with suchadjacent JOB IDs equals a bag quantity. In such embodiments, the system900 may be configured such that the stacker 950 strips slots 951containing products associated with multiple, different JOB IDs into asingle primary package. In such embodiments, a product comprising a JOBID order identifier graphic 116 associated with a first customer ordermay be visible through the primary package while a product comprising aJOB ID order identifier graphic 116 associated with a second, differentcustomer order may not be visible through the primary package. All ofthe products comprising JOB ID order identifier graphics 116 associatedwith different customer orders may be removed from the primary packageprior.

In such embodiments where the system 900 is configured to strip productsassociated with multiple, different JOB IDs into a single primarypackage, each JOB ID may comprise an order component marking each JOB IDas either a primary JOB ID or a sub-JOB ID. Accordingly, as the productmanufacturing apparatus 900 scans a JOB ID order identifier graphic 116,the control circuitry 960 may determine whether the JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116 corresponds to a primary JOB ID or a sub-JOB ID.If the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 corresponds to a primary JOBID, the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 may be considered a primaryorder identifier graphic. Where the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116corresponds to a sub-JOB ID, the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 maybe considered a sub-order identifier graphic.

If the control circuitry 960 determines that a scanned JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116 is a primary order identifier graphic, thecontrol circuitry 960 may cause the stacker 950 to insert apredetermined number of empty slots 951, as described previously. Wherethe control circuitry 960 determines that a scanned JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116 is a sub-order identifier graphic, the controlcircuitry 960 may not cause the stacker to insert the predeterminednumber of empty slots. In this fashion, products associated withdifferent JOB IDs may be manufactured and be disposed within sequentialslots 951 in the stacker 950 without empty slots 951 between productsassociated with the different JOB IDs. Therefore, products associatedwith different JOB IDs may end up stripped in a single stripping actionby the stacker 950 into the same primary packaging.

In other embodiments, each JOB ID may comprise an order component flagindicating if a JOB ID is a primary JOB ID. When the productmanufacturing apparatus 900 scans a JOB ID order identifier graphic 116,the control circuitry 960 may determine whether the JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116 corresponds to a primary JOB ID. If the JOB IDorder identifier graphic 116 corresponds to a primary JOB ID, the JOB IDorder identifier graphic 116 may be considered a primary orderidentifier graphic. If the control circuitry 960 determines that ascanned JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 is a primary orderidentifier graphic, the control circuitry 960 may cause the stacker 950to insert a predetermined number of empty slots 951, as describedpreviously. Additionally, the control circuitry 960 may be configured tonot insert the predetermined number of empty slots 951 into the stackerafter successfully scanning a JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 on anarticle 902 within a bag quantity number of articles 902 subsequent tothe article 902 comprising the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 whichthe control circuitry 960 determined was a primary JOB ID orderidentifier graphic 116. Accordingly, where multiple orders comprisingorder quantities less than a bag quantity are formed adjacent to eachother on the product manufacturing apparatus 900, such orders will nothave the predetermined number of empty slots 951 between the products ofthe different orders in the stacker 950. In this way, when the stacker950 strips products into a primary package, these orders will bepackaged together in the primary package.

Another scanner 959 may be disposed within the product manufacturingapparatus 900 after the products have been moved into a primary packageand configured to be able to read the JOB ID graphic order identifier116 through the primary package. If the scanner 959 is successful inreading the JOB ID graphic order identifier 116, the stacker 950 isconfigured to route the primary package along a first route.Additionally, the product manufacturing apparatus 900 may be configuredto (or the control circuitry 960 may be configured to make the productmanufacturing apparatus 900) take one or more additional actions, suchas printing a shipping label corresponding to the JOB ID associated withthe scanned JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 and/or printing a customcard comprising text corresponding to the JOB ID associated with thescanned JOB ID order identifier graphic 116. Such a card may besubsequently inserted into the primary package or a secondary packageinto which the primary package is placed.

The product comprising the test product graphic 110 may additionally beremoved from the primary package, resulting in the primary packagecontaining the products, in the quantity and with the selected and/ordesigned graphic designs, associated with the customer order having theJOB ID associated with the JOB ID graphic order identifier 116 of theproduct that was removed from the primary package. A final inspectionmay be performed to ensure the number of products in the primarypackaging equals the order quantity number associated with the customerorder corresponding to the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116 of theproduct that was removed from the primary package. Such a finalinspection may additionally and/or alternatively determine if theselected and/or designed graphic designs of the products in the primarypackage correspond to the customer order corresponding to the JOB IDorder identifier graphic 116 of the product that was removed from theprimary package. For example, the graphic designs associated with thecustomer order corresponding to the JOB ID order identifier graphic 116of the product that was removed from the primary package may bedisplayed on a monitor to allow for a visual comparison with the printedgraphic designs on the manufactured products within the primary package.The primary package may further be inserted into a secondary packagewhich is sealed, in some embodiments. In some further embodiments, ashipping label may be printed and applied to the secondary package.

Where the scanner 959 fails to successfully read the JOB ID graphicorder identifier 116, the stacker 950 may direct the primary packagealong a second route. The second route may lead to a bin where theproduct is trashed. Alternatively, the product within the primarypackage may be manually inspected to determine whether the product hassufficient quality to be shipped out.

All documents cited in the Detailed Description are, in relevant part,incorporated herein by reference; the citation of any document is not tobe construed as an admission that it is prior art with respect to thepresent invention. To the extent that any meaning or definition of aterm in this written document conflicts with any meaning or definitionof the term in a document incorporated by references, the meaning ordefinition assigned to the term in this written document shall govern.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that the present disclosure maybe manifested in a variety of forms other than the specific embodimentsdescribed and contemplated herein. Specifically, the various featuresdescribed with respect to the various embodiments and figures should notbe construed to be applicable to only those embodiments and/or figures.Rather, each described feature may be combined with any other feature invarious contemplated embodiments, either with or without any of theother features described in conjunction with those features.Accordingly, departure in form and detail may be made without departingfrom the scope of the present disclosure as described in the appendedclaims.

EMBODIMENTS

Embodiment 1: A method for manufacturing products having custom graphicdesigns may comprise printing a first order identifier graphic on asubstrate material, the first order identifier graphic associated with afirst order for a first set of products, printing a first set of one ormore graphic designs on the first substrate material, the first set ofone or more graphic designs associated with the first order, combiningthe first substrate material with one or more product components to forma first set of products, each of the products of the first set ofproducts being associated with the first customer order and at least oneof the products of the first set of products comprising the first orderidentifier graphic, performing a print quality inspection on the printtest graphic, and after determining the print test graphic failed theprint quality inspection, culling each of the plurality of productsassociated with the first order.

Embodiment 2: The method of embodiment 1, further comprising afterdetermining the print test graphic passed the print quality inspection,packaging at least one product of the first set of products into a firstpackage.

Embodiment 3: The method of any of the preceding embodiments, furthercomprising packaging the at least one product comprising the print testgraphic with at least one product of the first set of products into afirst package.

Embodiment 4: The method of embodiment 3, further comprising removingthe at least one product comprising the print test graphic from thefirst package.

Embodiment 5: The method of any of the preceding embodiments, whereinthe print inspection test may comprise determining an offset between afirst printed feature of the print test graphic and a second printedfeature of the print test graphic, and determining the print testgraphic fails the print quality inspection based on comparison of theoffset to a threshold value.

Embodiment 6: The method of embodiment 5, wherein the first printedfeature may be printed by a first print head and the second printedfeature may be printed by a second print head, the first print head andthe second print head being part of a same print bar.

Embodiment 7: The method of embodiment 5 or 6, wherein the first printedfeature may be a first printed line and the second printed feature maybe a second printed line.

Embodiment 8: The method of embodiment 7, wherein determining an offsetbetween the first printed feature and the second printed feature maycomprise determining a longitudinal distance between a portion of thefirst printed line and a corresponding portion of the second printedline.

Embodiment 9: The method of any of embodiments 5-8, wherein the firstprinted feature may be printed by a first print head and the secondprinted feature may be printed by a second print head, the first printhead and the second print head being part of separate print bars spacedfrom each other in a longitudinal direction.

Embodiment 10: The method of embodiment 9, wherein determining an offsetbetween the first printed feature and the second printed feature maycomprise determining a longitudinal distance between a portion of thefirst printed feature and a corresponding portion of the second printedfeature.

Embodiment 11: The method of embodiment 9 or 10, wherein the firstprinted feature and the second printed feature may be printed blocks.

Embodiment 12: The method of any of the preceding embodiments, whereinthe print inspection test may comprise determining a first offsetbetween a first printed feature of the print test graphic and a secondprinted feature of the print test graphic, determining a second offsetbetween the first printed feature of the print test graphic and a thirdprinted feature of the print test graphic, and determining the printtest graphic fails the print quality inspection based on a comparison ofthe difference between the first offset and the second offset to athreshold.

Embodiment 13: The method of any of the preceding embodiments, furthercomprising printing a JOB ID graphic on the substrate material, the JOBID graphic associated with the first order for a first set of products,and after determining the print test graphic failed the print qualityinspection, modifying the JOB ID graphic.

Embodiment 14: The method of embodiment 13, wherein modifying the JOB IDgraphic may comprise printing over the JOB ID graphic.

Embodiment 15: The method of embodiment 13 or 14, wherein culling eachof the plurality of products associated with the first order comprisesdetecting the modification to the JOB ID graphic and culling each of theplurality of products associated with the first order based on thedetected modification to the JOB ID graphic.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for manufacturing products having customgraphic designs, the method comprising: printing a first print testgraphic on a first substrate material, the first print test graphicassociated with a first order for a first set of products; printing afirst set of one or more graphic designs on the first substratematerial, the first set of one or more graphic designs associated withthe first order; combining the first substrate material with one or moreproduct components to form a first set of products, each of the productsof the first set of products being associated with the first customerorder and at least one of the products of the first set of productscomprising the first print test graphic; performing a print qualityinspection on the print test graphic; and after determining the printtest graphic failed the print quality inspection, culling each of theplurality of products associated with the first order; wherein, theprint quality inspection determines any offset between different printedregions of the printed test graphics.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising after determining the print test graphic passed the printquality inspection, packaging at least one product of the first set ofproducts into a first package.
 3. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising packaging the at least one product comprising the print testgraphic with at least one product of the first set of products into afirst package.
 4. The method of claim 3, further comprising removing theat least one product comprising the print test graphic from the firstpackage.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the print quality inspectioncomprises: determining a first offset between a first printed feature ofthe print test graphic and a second printed feature of the print testgraphic; and determining the print test graphic fails the print qualityinspection based on comparison of the first offset to a threshold value.6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first printed feature is printedby a first print head and the second printed feature is printed by asecond print head, the first print head and the second print head beingpart of a same print bar.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the firstprinted feature is a first printed line and the second printed featureis a second printed line.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein determiningthe first offset between the first printed feature and the secondprinted feature comprises determining a longitudinal distance between aportion of the first printed line and a corresponding portion of thesecond printed line.
 9. The method of claim 5, wherein the first printedfeature is printed by a first print head and the second printed featureis printed by a second print head, the first print head and the secondprint head being part of separate print bars spaced from each other in alongitudinal direction.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein determiningthe first offset between the first printed feature and the secondprinted feature comprises determining a longitudinal distance between aportion of the first printed feature and a corresponding portion of thesecond printed feature.
 11. The method of claim 9, wherein the firstprinted feature and the second printed feature are printed blocks. 12.The method of claim 5 further comprising: printing a JOB ID graphic onthe substrate material, the JOB ID graphic associated with the firstorder for a first set of products; and after determining the print testgraphic failed the print quality inspection, modifying the JOB IDgraphic.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein modifying the JOB IDgraphic comprises printing over the JOB ID graphic.
 14. The method ofclaim 12, wherein culling each of the plurality of products associatedwith the first order comprises detecting the modification to the JOB IDgraphic and culling each of the plurality of products associated withthe first order based on the detected modification to the JOB IDgraphic.
 15. The method of claim 5, further comprising determining asecond offset between the first printed feature of the print testgraphic and a third printed feature of the print test graphic, andwherein determining the print test graphic fails the print qualityinspection based on comparison of the first offset to a threshold valuecomprises determining the print test graphic fails the print qualityinspection based on a comparison of the difference between the firstoffset and the second offset to a threshold value.